


Nightmare

by Oparu



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Mother-Daughter Relationship, implied dragon queen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-08
Updated: 2016-07-08
Packaged: 2018-07-22 07:17:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7425277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oparu/pseuds/Oparu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lily has a nightmare, a stupid one, and her mom ends up making her feel better.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nightmare

The storm knocked out the power, she tells herself over and over. Regina would never, ever, pay her electric bill late. Regina probably owns half the power company and doesn’t have a mortgage payment. 

Lily sits up in the darkness of the living room and grabs her flashlight. The house sits quiet, rain still pouring down but not as bad but it was. No more hail, and the roof is sturdy. 

Her mothers can probably fix the house with magic in their sleep. Fixing power lines is a no, because electricty and magic don’t mix, but roofs, they’re simple. 

She heads for the kitchen, pouring herself one finger, then two of whiskey in the bottom of one of Regina’s nice glasses. It’s nice whiskey, smooth, not painful and Lily downs it too fast. She’s lived with flashlights and candles, making a fire outside to heat canned soup, bringing home leftovers from work and eating them cold while she waits for payday or enough tips to turn the power back on. 

Bills spiral so fast, but Regina’s never had to deal with that. Mom only vaguely understands her bank account, and Regina, Lily and Henry are always trying to explain to her how paper money is worth more than coins. The little plastic card is still laughable to her, which is adorable. 

Probably stole her castle, or built it herself with magic or something. Never had to pay rent or worry about stupid things like not getting her power shut off. Which is a stupid thing to still have nightmares about, because she’s good now. She has an apartment, a job, not one, but two mothers who would do anything for her. 

Definitely needs more whiskey before she can deal with that idea. She pours and sighs, about to put the bottle back, but Mom’s there. 

“May I have a glass before you put it away?”

“Sure you don’t want a goblet?”

Mom smirks. “You don’t drinks whiskey from goblets.”

“What do you drink from goblets?” Lily asks, taking a glass from Regina’s well stocked cabinet. Goblets are on the top shelf. 

“Mead, wine, fortified wine,” Mom says, taking the whiskey. “You might like mead.”

“Too sweet.”

Mom reaches for her shoulder, and her hand hovers before she lowers it. She does that, makes sure Lily’s okay before she touches her. No one does that. People just take what they want. 

Not Mom, not Regina, not Henry, they’re all willing to wait, to let her pull back before they touch her, and make sure she wants it before they hug her. It hurts them, a little less each time, but they all hold back. 

Mom smiles when Lily doesn’t pull away. She loves it when they touch. “Are you only awake to pilfer Regina’s whiskey?” 

“Bad dream,” Lily says, shrugging. “It was stupid.”

“Tell me.” Mom’s face is so gentle, soft and wanting. “Please.”

“I dreamt I was back in my apartment, really shitty one, back in Massachusetts. I worked in lousy bar, tips were bad sometimes and it was a struggle. Rent’s always more than you can pay, even in a fleabag, cockroach infested cave, and you have a couple bad days, a slow week, and then you can’t afford to keep the power on.”  

“Because you pay for electricity.” 

“Yeah. Sometimes more than you have.”

“I’m sorry.” Mom tilts her head. “That sounds awful.” She doesn’t cry, doesn’t blame herself, which means that the therapy sessions are working. She’s been so much calmer since she started talking to Roger-Hopper-Cricket, whatever his name is. “You’re safe now.” She reaches out, putting another hand on Lily’s other shoulder and she waits, looking for permission in Lily’s face. 

“You can hug me.” 

She’s so warm; no one else feels like the right temperature after Mom. Hugging her is somehow perfect, everything she’s wanted all her life and most of the time she wakes up in a cold sweat because she’s lost Mom, or never ound her, or she’s still alone and afraid, struggling to keep the power on and have enough food or shoes that don’t slip on the floor. 

Lily drops her head to her mother’s shoulder, settling in because it is nice to be told she’s okay. Way nicer than she’s going to admit, yet. 

She stays there, safe and protected, until she has to giggle, because here she is, being held after a nightmare and she’s thirty-two. 

“What is it?”

“I had a nightmare and you’re hugging me.”

“That’s what we’re supposed to do.” 

“I know! I just–” Lily pulls back. “I’m thirty-two.”

“The last time my mother hugged me, I was well over two hundred,” Mom says. “It’s still nice.”

“It is.”

Mom’s smile could turn the power back on. Lily doesn’t know how she smiles like that, but it’s amazing and terrifying. “I love you.”

“I know.” 

Mom touches her cheek, then beams. “Good.” 


End file.
